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The Lost Ear
"The Lost Ear" is the twenty-ninth chapter of Wayside School is Falling Down. Synopsis While Mac is telling another story, Benjamin finally reveals his name to the class. Plot This chapter opens with Mrs. Jewls teaching the class about mammals. She remarks that all mammals have hair, when Bebe asks if her father is a mammal because he's bald. While the rest of the class laughs, Benjamin Nushmutt finally prepares to tell Mrs. Jewls his real name. He raises his hand, but Mac raises his at the same time. Mrs. Jewls calls on Mac, who starts telling a story about how he recalls hearing once about a hippie who has getting his hair cut, when the barber accidentally cuts off his ear. He explains that because the hippie had long hair, the barber couldn't see the ear. Mrs. Jewls claims it's an interesting story, but Mac explains he isn't finished. He goes on to talk about how the barber asks the hippie if it's his ear on the floor, but the hippie proclaims he couldn't hear the barber, so the hippie was taken to the doctor. Todd asks if they were able to put the ear back on, but Mac explains that once they got there, they couldn't find the ear. Everyone asks where the ear was. Allison asks if they ever found it, and Mac says she couldn't guess where. Mrs. Jewls questions if it was in the refridgerator, but Mac questions how it could get there. Mrs. Jewls remarks they need to get back to mammals, and calls on Benjamin, who explains that his name isn't Mark Miller, but actually Benjamin Nushmutt, and that he's from Hempleton, rather than Magadonia. Mrs. Jewls thinks that's fine, but decides to get back to mammals. She explains that a whale is the largest mammal, even though it lives in the ocean. John questions if whales have hair, and Mrs. Jewls says they do, much to the amusement of Dana and Paul. Benjamin questions if anyone heard him. Mrs. Jewls says she did, much to Benjamin's confusion. He questions if anyone heard him, and if anyone thinks he's weird. Sharie chimes in, saying Benjamin isn't weird at all, because he never brought in a hobo for show and tell. Bebe says that that isn't as weird as her saying she has a brother when she doesn't. Stephen says that's relatively normal in comparison to trying to choke himself with a tie to look nice. Jenny claims that's not that weird when she tried to read a story backwards, while Rondi says that isn't as weird as asking Louis to kick her in the teeth. Finally Todd notes that what's really crazy is that they go to school on the thirtieth story, while the bathrooms are on the first. Everyone agrees with that. Benjamin feels reassured to be in a class where no one is weird, because no one is normal. Mrs. Jewls suddenly realizes something, as she finally hands Benjamin his lunch. At lunch, Allison is heading down the stairs, when he sees Mark Miller. Mark Miller carries a white sack, much like the one Benjamin's lunch is in, and Allison briefly worries she's back on the nineteenth story. However, Mark reassures her, saying he was dismissed from class when everyone realized his name wasn't Benjamin Nushmutt. Apparently Miss Zarves told him to take the bag to the hospital. Allison looks inside the bag and sees the ear mentioned in Mac's story. Suddenly, Allison understands everything, about Miss Zarves, Benjamin Nushmutt, the severed ear in a bag, but then she loses it. Characters *Mrs. Jewls *Bebe Gunn *Mr. Gunn (mentioned, debut) *Benjamin Nushmutt *Mac *Hippie (mentioned, debut) *Barber (mentioned, debut) *Todd *Doctors (mentioned, debut) *Joy *Eric Bacon *Jenny *Allison *John *Dana *Paul *Sharie *Hobo Bob (mentioned, final appearance) *Ray Gunn (mentioned) *Stephen *Rondi *Mark Miller (final appearance) *Miss Zarves (mentioned) Trivia *Unlike in "Homework," Mrs. Jewls willingly calls on Mac. *This is the final appearance of Mark Miller, and the final time Hobo Bob is mentioned. Gallery The Lost Ear 1989.jpg|Joel Schick illustration The Lost Ear 2003.jpg|Adam McCauley illustration Foreign Editions The Lost Ear Illustration.jpg|Peter Allen illustration (UK) Benjamin Mrs. Jewls The Lost Ear.png|Peter Allen second illustration (UK) Allison Confused The Lost Ear.jpg|Peter Allen third illustration (UK) The Lost Ear Kitamura.png|Satoshi Kitamura illustration (Japan) Category:Wayside School is Falling Down chapters Category:Book chapters